What happened to the site? It was down for a while.
Posted on: May 21, 2010 - 7:43pm
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What happened to the site? It was down for a while.
What happened? Is everything ok?
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Was wondering the same thing.
.........Brian and his new girlfriend were so hot and heavy they didn't realized they were busy right on top of the server unit. You can see the results on Atheistporn.com I recognized the tatoo Brian.
"Very funny Scotty; now beam down our clothes."
VEGETARIAN: Ancient Hindu word for "lousy hunter"
If man was formed from dirt, why is there still dirt?
Man, I was starting to have withdrawals........
I thought it was my connection, then I thought maybe it was stupid Firefox. I emailed Brian through Facebook and he was already all over it ~From what I gather it was a server issue ~
Welcome back to all of us
Slowly building a blog at ~
http://obsidianwords.wordpress.com/
I immediately blamed islamic types for running a DDOS on the site because of the 'Draw a Picture of Mo' day.
How can not believing in something that is backed up with no empirical evidence be less scientific than believing in something that not only has no empirical evidence but actually goes against the laws of the universe and in many cases actually contradicts itself? - Ricky Gervais
The whole hosting service went down. Believe me, I tried those hacking tools that made sense and from what I can tell, the problem was that the whole co-location center seemed to be down. I could not even get the webcams that are deployed around the building.
I did find some indication of where it is probably located and well, not saying anything much but there was a significant news event in the area at about the right time. If Brian wants to say more, I am sure that he will.
=
YAY!
I won't be checking a down site anymore!
Gene,
You're half right. We got shut down at the server level due to an "error" at their billing department. The "error" was "fixed" and it became a little more expensive to keep the site up and running, so the continued donations from subscribers are much appreciated. Thank you.
- Brian
P.S. Anyone get upset at the thought of life without an RRS site, while it was down? I thought it sucked.
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I was wondering why I've been feeling a little depressed these last couple of days.... hmmm....
I thought I had been GLINE'd from the server. (and that everyone else was having access)
I lost my clique -virtual though it may be. (And yes, I am that pathetic, most days
)
RRS is also the only place I've found so far that lets me mock and criticize others' often overzealous system of morals and, of course, taboos (including those of other atheists). If I trash someone's moral beliefs as if I were tipping cattle over anywhere else, I would probably have gotten three times the bans I have gotten since 1999.
“A meritocratic society is one in which inequalities of wealth and social position solely reflect the unequal distribution of merit or skills amongst human beings, or are based upon factors beyond human control, for example luck or chance. Such a society is socially just because individuals are judged not by their gender, the colour of their skin or their religion, but according to their talents and willingness to work, or on what Martin Luther King called 'the content of their character'. By extension, social equality is unjust because it treats unequal individuals equally.” "Political Ideologies" by Andrew Heywood (2003)
I thought it might have been a Chinese internet thing at first (sometimes it hiccups)- I couldn't really conceive of RRS being blocked in China (maybe in a theocracy like Canada, but not in China).
Wasn't working through VPN either, though, so that seemed pretty conclusive.
I'm glad things are back up and running.
These things happen... However I am glad that it didnt happen for too long...
www.RichWoodsBlog.com
I'm surprised what is blocked and what isn't blocked in China. It seems so arbitrary. I'm here for another week and I miss getting on the net without worrying about proxies and vpn stuff.
Everything makes more sense now that I've stopped believing.
Welcome to corporate surfing.
HR forbid you should be able to check your personal email at work during lunch hour.
-- I feel so much better since I stopped trying to believe.
"We are entitled to our own opinions. We're not entitled to our own facts"- Al Franken
"If death isn't sweet oblivion, I will be severely disappointed" - Ruth M.
HR forbid people dilly-dallying on the web all day trolling messageboards and posting meaningless bullshit while pretending to work!
(AKA desk-job IT career ; )
“A meritocratic society is one in which inequalities of wealth and social position solely reflect the unequal distribution of merit or skills amongst human beings, or are based upon factors beyond human control, for example luck or chance. Such a society is socially just because individuals are judged not by their gender, the colour of their skin or their religion, but according to their talents and willingness to work, or on what Martin Luther King called 'the content of their character'. By extension, social equality is unjust because it treats unequal individuals equally.” "Political Ideologies" by Andrew Heywood (2003)
I has lag!
website are broke!!11one
Are you in China for the expo?
Internet... I think it largely has to do with:
1. Where Muslims and sympathizers have been posting police responses to the violent ethnic riots (which have been generating more tension from other Muslims here). One potential alternative might be to flood out those minority of videos with their own footage of the Muslims beating police and lynching Chinese women and children in the streets; I guess the silly police are more concerned with actually ending the riots than taking footage.
2. Where idiot Gong practitioners/cultists have been spreading misinformation/converting droves of people to their depraved cult. I agree with Randi that education is preferable to legislation, but setting up the necessary infrastructure, and really getting science and critical thinking working on a large scale is easier said than done- legislation is obviously the short term fix.
3. Occasional Tibetan revolutionary stuff- seriously, who the in their right minds wants to return to a brutal theocratic dictatorship? I have a suspicion: the feudal lords who lost their lands, subservient peasant slaves, and privileged titles, and still control the Tibetan people through their backwards and sick fundamentalist religious version of what is usually an otherwise more respectable Buddhist philosophy. I have no sympathies for the Lama- he talks big about peace, but that bozo is supposed to be in control of his own government in exile. If the spineless quack had any decency, he'd take an ounce of moral responsibility for the actions of his government in exile and his people and starve himself until they stopped rioting.
[/rant]
Personally, I'm disappointed that Bibles aren't still banned here; the party was really forced to cave there from Western pressure, it seems.
I don't mind the screwy internet, because I know how naive and trusting (gullible) the average uneducated Chinese is- they haven't had our [perhaps bad] luck to be exposed to myriad nonsense political and spiritual views as children and be desensitized to it. Lack of practice in critical thinking as young people has led to a potentially unstable social situation where cults can prosper with droves of unsuspecting victims.
I know the Chinese government isn't trying to stop me from enjoying youtube... it's just an unfortunate side effect. Given the alternative, I wouldn't have it any other way until education and critical thinking are more widespread here.
I'll have you know I'm at home trolling message boards and posting meaningless bullshit while pretending to .... well, I don't have to pretend to work at the moment.
-- I feel so much better since I stopped trying to believe.
"We are entitled to our own opinions. We're not entitled to our own facts"- Al Franken
"If death isn't sweet oblivion, I will be severely disappointed" - Ruth M.
hear, hear! it seems you and i might agree on something after all, blake. i'm damn tired of china being a cliche for oppression among both theists and atheists.
i'm especially with you on the dalai lama. that son of a bitch is the biggest fraud ever. i'm so sick of him being paraded around hollywood and washington and all of europe as if he cured cancer or something. what the fuck has that prick ever done? get deservedly run out of his country and write several books of self-help drivel even deepak chopra would have a right to sneer at. if you ask people today who are the greatest people of the 20th century, ten-to-one the dalai lama will come up pretty quickly--a man who has done absolutely nothing but enjoy countless hours of fawning hospitality.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
@Blake: What expo? I'm just here for a bunch of IT work at our Dalian facility. Myself and one other IT guy trade off and on for trips and this time was my turn. I made it to my first mostly-legit KTV bar last night though and had a lot of fun.
Everything makes more sense now that I've stopped believing.
Crackhead.
Glad its back.
Enlightened Atheist, Gaming God.
Cool... I'm not sure what all we've disagreed on, so I'll assume you're keeping better track than I am. Everybody is bound to have something to agree on with any given person.
World Expo in Shanghai. Dalian is pretty nice; I used to live there. A little boring sometimes, though. I still don't get those "beaches" there.
Not even once.
When you have to swear loyalty to a monarchy that is given credulity by a church, and churches are not only tax exempt but receiving distinct tax benefits (pay your tithe lately? You sure have if you pay taxes in Canada) along with myriad laws protecting them in ways that would be considered gross violations of religious freedom anywhere outside of the Muslim world (such as it being a crime to interrupt a church service)- and perhaps a few other backwards countries like Poland where blasphemy laws (not unlike de facto practice in Canada that allow civil suits against people for the same) are quite popular... add that to the sheer political sway the dominant churches have over the government even beyond the people [votes] they control (I mean real cahoots)... yeah, I think theocracy is a reasonably fair charge.
Either a crackhead or woefully uneducated about Canada.
England maybe. Not Canada. The monarchy has no authority. I never swore fealty to any monarchy, and neither have most Canadians. England's monarchy is irrelevant to Canada in every way that matters.
The suggestion the churches have any more power over our government than any other country where a good percentage of the population is religious is sheerly ludicrous.
And any funding they receive is for charitable work, it's not for promotional purposes. So it's not nearly as bad as you make it out.
A theocracy? Only if every nation is.
Enlightened Atheist, Gaming God.
Neither. I used to live in Canada, and I was involved in secular activism there in university. Before such a point, I actually thought Canada was better than the U.S. (Hah!)
You were apparently born there, so you never had to take the naturalization oath. Your ignorance on the matter might be excusable.
Oh, and whom are we swearing allegiance to again?
Oh, right-- her. Defender of the faith!
And she just happens to the the supreme head of the Church of England. Fancy that.
Haha! Silly Canadians...
The crown is extremely powerful in Canada, even today (arguably more powerful in Canada than the President of the U.S. is in the states); that Elizabeth II rarely uses her powers, and that they are often executed where they are used by proxy (Ever heard of Governor General? Queen on the bench?) is irrelevant to their existence.
You didn't have to; you were born into it.
Wow, not just ludicrous, but sheerly ludicrous.
Too bad it's true. Doubly bad that so many Canadians (who might otherwise fight the highly biased system) are completely ignorant of it. Ever hear of Royal Prerogative? Probably not.
Riiiiiight... so you consider Orthodox Christian schools that brainwash children to be charitable work? Public Schools are already free- the Canadian government doesn't need to be funding a flurry of religious schools (of it's particular local orthodox Christian denomination).
The funding that is "charitable" (and barely so- care for some watery gruel with your sermon?), is also preferentially channeled into particular churches.
It's even worse than Bush's faith based initiatives.
No, it's much worse.
What the hell kind of argument is that?
"Is that house on fire? Durr... only if the whole universe is on fire."
You are ruled by, and are considered a subject of the Queen of England, who derives her powers from the 'almighty' (FYI, legally, she is also infallible/omnibenevolent), and is the supreme head of Church as well.
You have an incidental right of "freedom of religion", which has been tacked on rather after the fact, but nothing whatsoever resembling freedom from it.
If I were you, I wouldn't be all that proud to be a Canadian. This also begs the question of just how "enlightened" you are, I suspect.
Do your homework before you call people crackheads.
One or the other. Probably both.
Didn't learn much did you?
It is. Hah!
Nope.
Canada funds all kinds of schools. All of them are required to follow state curriculums. We just have a higher view of education than the US. But feel free to keep proving your ignorance.
Guess you didn't know the Governor General is Canadian. Somehow I'm not surprised.
Enlightened Atheist, Gaming God.
Antiquated lip service that has no bearing on reality. Also something 90% of Canadians never had to do.
Which is how I know you're uneducated and/or a crackhead.
Superior to your own.
Ignoramus = You.
Hahahahahahaha
Enlightened Atheist, Gaming God.
No, I do know that it is precedent to select a Governor General (who will live in Canada anyway) who is already a Canadian- but mind you one who is still a subject of the Queen (as all Canadians are- in particular, government officials re-affirm this oath); it's irrelevant that your local Governor generals usually happen to have been born in Canada- they remain extensions of the Queen. This is done in all of the Queen's territories.
90%? Really?
You're off by a factor of two, with regards to the people who have taken this vow, or are waiting to do so.
http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/as-sa/97-557/p2-eng.cfm
Seriously, are you some kind of redneck country bumpkin, so ignorant and afire with your Canadian patriotism that you are delusional?
It's more than antiquated lip service- and more importantly, you can't do Jack-shit to change it. Do a little research into how your own government works- and about the sheer extent of power that the Queen really does have over you (as one of her subjects), that by the grace of convenience or whim she just doesn't tend to make use of.
ALL kinds of schools? Really? How ignorant can you be? Lets find out... ever hear of Alder v. Ontario?
A higher education standard? Like teaching faith in god in school (either more directly, or less so by funding 'optional' classes in Christian god-faith)? See, in the States, the supreme court actually puts a stop to shit like that.
Sure, there's argument about it, but that's all it is- the Supreme court of Canada won't do shit about it, because you aren't really guaranteed equal rights to religious people. Canada was founded with special religious bedfellows- as the rulings of your supreme court make that VERY clear.
Some trivial (because in Canada, people don't really have much power over anything) debate:
http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/public_funding_of_catholic_schools_creates_debate_in_ontario/
You sir, in your ignorant apathy to your corrupt and backwards theistic government, do not deserve the title of a secular activist of any kind.
Pretty typical Canadian, you are- way to go not caring about anything that's important, and having no real standards or ideals that don't fold over when confronted with the idea of actual effort, thought, or 'god forbid' questioning your preconceived dogmatic patriotism.
I've met Canadians with backbone who actually care about this kind of thing- those who were indignant upon learning it in their days, and have fought against this kind of thing even to the point of being accosted by police and potentially arrested under backwards laws.
It's really too bad that most Canadians are like you, and either just don't give a shit, or are too blinded by their ignorant redneck patriotism to see what's obvious.
Here's to hoping that you'll wake up some day and realize what kind of government you live under.
Best of luck with that- but I doubt it will be any time soon.
Your ignorance is astounding. The queen doesn't even have any authority in her own nation, let alone mine. Every time you post you further prove both your ignorance and your stupidity. Canada is owned, operated, and governed by the Canadian electorate, period.
So you're not only stupid and ignorant, but you stoop to misrepresentation and lies. I never put emphasis on the "all". Obviously you are simply too foolish to waste my time on. Your delusions have locked themselves deep within what passes for your mind.
Enlightened Atheist, Gaming God.
Irony has taken this thread by storm.
Wow! You just keep saying stupid things.
"Every time you post you further prove both your ignorance and your stupidity."
That you do, yes, that you do...
...in part, and in part directly by the crown through her representatives. That electorate, however, is also essentially property of the crown (as all Canadians are [like their passports] property of the Queen, being her subjects), so ultimately, the crown would seem to maintain ownership over that, too.
Lucky for you poor Canadian feudal slaves, though, the Queen- by the power of your deity, of whose faith she is the defender as the absolute head of church- can do no wrong, and as such, she is an inherently benevolent despot who, by her moral whim, favors something vaguely resembling a mockery of democracy.
Good for you; you at least got the very beginning mostly right; just got a little overzealous with the "period", and interrupted the concept before it was half finished.
As you mature, and become less of an idiot, you may learn to suppress your urge to prematurely ejaculate "period" into paragraphs, interrupting their proper, correct, and satisfactory conclusions.
I didn't misrepresent anything; I was emphasizing where you were clearly wrong. Where YOU seem to be lying about your government to prop up and glorify your corrupt and barely above medieval theocratic system.
The fact that they won't fund all kinds of religious schools (only some in particular) was the very point several supreme court cases were about.
You said they funded "all kinds"; I will admit they they fund some kinds, so the contention was on the all, and therein I placed emphasis. I have no problem with the postulate that there are kinds, so I didn't feel the need to emphasize that word- I could have, though. That you fail to understand some basic concepts of conversation is not terribly surprising.
They don't fund all kinds. They don't fund ALL kinds. They don't find all KINDS. and they don't fund ALL KINDS. It doesn't matter how or what I emphasize, or if I emphasize it at all; I'm showing you where you are obviously and profoundly wrong.
What you said was wrong- not just what I emphasized.
I can just as easily say it without any capitals at all. I'll repeat it in a different way:
You think they fund "all kinds" of schools? Really? How ignorant can you be?
As has been clearly demonstrated- a fuckton [as a measure of ignorance].
Mindless patriotism... it's like a hornet's nest. I know what will happen, but still, I just can't help but poke at it.
I dunno if it's Mindless Patriotism so much as Vastet being a good bit more self-righteous than so many other RRS'ers here.
“A meritocratic society is one in which inequalities of wealth and social position solely reflect the unequal distribution of merit or skills amongst human beings, or are based upon factors beyond human control, for example luck or chance. Such a society is socially just because individuals are judged not by their gender, the colour of their skin or their religion, but according to their talents and willingness to work, or on what Martin Luther King called 'the content of their character'. By extension, social equality is unjust because it treats unequal individuals equally.” "Political Ideologies" by Andrew Heywood (2003)